Banks, exporters lead gains in South Korean shares; shipyards fall

Reuters Staff

4 Min Read

* Foreign buying, banks send KOSPI higher

* Daewoo Shipbuilding falls on profitability worries

* Hitejinro, Halla rally on MSCI index addition

SEOUL, May 16 (Reuters) - South Korean shares rose on Thursday with banks and exporters the main gainers as the pace of yen depreciation slowed, easing some concerns about the competitiveness of South Korean exports.

Shares in NHN Corp, an internet portal operator, jumped 7.5 percent after hitting an all-time high, as success of its “Line” smartphone mobile messenger application fueled hopes it may contribute to earnings in the future, analysts said.

Line is expected to attract 400 million users worldwide this year with user count seen rising in Japan, Europe and South America, said Choi Hun, an analyst at KB Investment & Securities.

Line’s current user count is estimated to be around 150 million, according to analysts.

“Expectation is that new profitable business opportunity may arise from this mobile messenger platform,” said Kong Young-kyu, an analyst at Shinhan Investment Corp.

Morgan Stanley and Credit Suisse were top buyers of the stock, acting on behalf of investors.

SHIPYARDS DRAG

But Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering tumbled 10.5 percent to its lowest close in about 2 weeks, after the South Korean shipbuilder said late on Wednesday its first quarter operating profit fell more than 50 percent from a year ago.

“Profits came out poorly despite relatively smaller allowance for bad debts,” said Han Young-soo, an analyst at Samsung Securities.

Daewoo Shipbuilding shares were the most-heavily traded share on the main KOSPI.